Turkey officially nominates Feridun Sinirlioğlu for UN secretary-general

Turkey has officially nominated diplomat Feridun Sinirlioğlu for the post of United Nations secretary-general, in a move aimed at breaking the deadlock in the contest to choose a successor to António Guterres, whose term ends next December.

According to media reports, Turkey’s envoy to the United Nations, Ahmet Yildiz, handed the nomination letter signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to the presidents of the General Assembly and the UN Security Council.

Sinirlioğlu, 70, has held since December 2024 the post of secretary-general of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, was Turkey’s foreign minister in 2015, and served as his country’s permanent representative to the United Nations between 2016 and 2023.

In his letter to the United Nations, Erdoğan said that his country’s candidate possesses "the strategic vision and the deep knowledge of the United Nations system and the culture of consensus necessary to lead the organization."

Sinirlioğlu becomes the ninth candidate in the race, which is currently led by former Costa Rican vice president Rebeca Grynspan, followed by the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi.

To win, a candidate must obtain at least nine votes in the Security Council, without any of the five permanent members using their veto, before the name is referred to the General Assembly for confirmation.